Having an effective and consistent program in place for enforcing safety rules, performance and behavior is vital for a successful safety program. A well-written, clear discipline plan is also crucial for enforcement.

Without such a plan in place, it's likely that overall safety results, such as accident frequency, workers' compensation costs, and employee morale will start trending the wrong way.

To demonstrate to OSHA that your company has implemented a comprehensive, successful safety program, you must be able to show that you have a documentable disciplinary program in place. Serious compliance issues, resulting in potential violations, citations, and penalties, may occur if you don't.

Additionally, if you don't include a disciplinary component as part of your enforcement program, you run the risk of not being able to use the "unpreventable employee misconduct/isolated incident" defense. "Unpreventable employee conduct" means even though the employer maintained an effective safety program, the cause of an accident was the unsafe act of the employee.

Join us for an in-depth webinar, the presenter, a seasoned safety lawyer who has helped many companies design and implement an effective safety enforcement program, will provide a roadmap for developing and implementing an effective enforcement strategy, including infraction discipline - often a missing ingredient in existing safety programs.

Learning Objectives

Recent approaches that OSHA has taken when inspecting and evaluating a company's safety enforcement program

How to write a comprehensive, clear, and fair safety rule enforcement policy that can stand up to union and OSHA scrutiny

Who should be involved in developing and implementing the safety rule enforcement policy

Key components that must be included in your safety rule enforcement policy and best practices for effective implementation

How to best communicate the safety rule enforcement program to key groups, especially line supervisors and employees

How to verify that the existing safety rules are clear, concise, and consistent and that all employees have been properly trained and understand the required safety rules to follow

How to tell if supervisors are consistently enforcing your safety rules

How to generate support and participation from all levels of the organization as you implement you safety rule enforcement program

How to identify and evaluate external resources - legal, safety consultants, human resources-that can help you develop and implement an effective and comprehensive safety work rule enforcement and disciplinary process

About Your Presenters

Attorney Adele Abrams, CMSP, is an attorney and safety professional who is recognized as a national expert on occupational safety and health. She heads a ten-attorney firm that represents employers and contractors nationwide in OSHA and MSHA litigation, and provides safety and health training, auditing, and consultation services. She is a Certified Mine Safety Professional, and a Department of Labor-approved trainer. She is also a professional member of the American Society of Safety Engineers, and is co-author of several safety-related textbooks. She is chair of the National Safety Council's Business &Industry Division committee on regulatory and legal affairs. She is admitted to the Bars of MD, DC and PA, as well as multiple federal courts including the US Supreme Court.

Licenses / Designations / Educational Credits:

COCAll US States: 0.075

About The Provider:

BLR® is the leader in helping organizations, and their employees, reduce safety, environmental and employment compliance-related legal exposure, stay on the right side of law, and achieve their full potential. We offer best-in-class compliance product and services that includes news, information & analysis, best practice guidance, employee training and turn-key tools delivered in a wide range of formats from online applications, live events and websites to books, CD's, Video, Posters and newsletters geared to all sized organizations and industries.